All posts by n8rngtd.top

Mark Footitt, the former Derbyshire left-arm fast bowler, and Liam Dawson, the Hampshire left-arm spinner, have been called up to the England Performance Programme (EPP) in South Africa and Dubai next month

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Oct-2015Mark Footitt, the former Derbyshire left-arm fast bowler who recently joined Surrey on a four-year contract, has been called up to the England Performance Programme (EPP) for a ten-day training camp in Potchefstroom next month.Footitt, 29, is considered by many to be the quickest bowler on the county circuit, and trained with England ahead of the Ashes last summer to help the batsmen prepare for the left-arm pace of Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc.He was initially overlooked for this winter’s EPP, even though some pundits suggested he would have been a worthy replacement during England’s Test series in the UAE, after Steven Finn succumbed to a stress injury in his foot.From November 11, he will be working alongside seven other promising English fast bowlers in South Africa – Jake Ball, Craig Miles, Craig and Jamie Overton, Tymal Mills, Olly Stone and Tom Curran, who was himself added to the party last month.Hampshire’s left-arm spinner, Liam Dawson, is another man who will be featuring in the EPP plans this winter, after he was called up to the batting and spin-bowling camp that starts in the UAE at the same time but lasts for two-and-a-half weeks.Dawson, who claimed 29 wickets at 31.93 for Hampshire last season, takes the place of Zafar Ansari, who has failed to recover in time from the thumb injury he sustained while fielding for Surrey against Lancashire.Ansari, whose injury occurred on the same day that he had been called into the Test squad, will continue to be monitored by a specialist, and his participation with the EPP and Lions programmes later this winter will be reviewed on an ongoing basis.From South Africa, Footitt and the rest of the EPP fast bowlers will fly to Dubai to join up with the EPP batting and spin bowling group for a further training opportunity in sub-continent conditions – ahead of the England Lions T20 series against Pakistan A, which gets underway on December 7.Both Footitt and Dawson will first take part in a four-day EPP training camp for all players at the National Cricket Performance Centre (NCPC) in Loughborough next week.”Congratulations to both Liam and Mark on their selection for this winter’s England Performance Programme,” said James Whitaker, the national selector. “The training camps in Dubai and Potchefstroom next month present an ideal opportunity for them to work closely with the EPP lead coaches and experience what it is like to be in an England environment.”This is essential as they continue to develop their all-round games and push for future international recognition.”It is unfortunate that Zafar’s recovery from injury has not progressed at a rate that would allow him to participate fully in the EPP batting and spin camp in the UAE at present. But we will continue to monitor his progress closely and will consider involving him in the later stages of the EPP and Lions programme this winter, once he regains full fitness.”

New Zealand will trial the pink ball and day-night format in the Plunket Shield in February, with plans being formulated to play a floodlit Test match against Bangladesh in December 2016

Daniel Brettig in Adelaide26-Nov-2015New Zealand will trial the pink ball and day-night format in the Plunket Shield in February, with plans being formulated to play a floodlit Test match against Bangladesh in December 2016.The February 20 round of the domestic competition will feature day-night matches played in Auckland, Hamilton and Napier, as a step on the road towards a proposed night Test against Bangladesh. Lindsay Crocker, New Zealand Cricket’s head of cricket, said December was the right time of year for the concept.”We think probably the best one to try it would be Bangladesh in December,” Crocker told stuff.co.nz. “We think November is a little early so that December series could potentially be one. But we haven’t discussed that with them yet.”That [Plunket Shield round] sits quite nicely with three home teams having lit venues. We’ve identified that as a round that, should this [Adelaide] match go successfully and we’re satisfied that we can try it, then we would [go ahead].”The BCB said it hadn’t been approached yet. “They haven’t told us but if it comes up, it will first go to the cricket committee, then we will take a policy decision on the board level,” the chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury told ESPNcricinfo.David White, the NZC chief executive, said momentum for the format was growing. “In the debate around the ICC chief executives’ table there has been a lot of interest,” White said. “Everyone acknowledges that outside of England and Australia it’s been a challenge for Test crowds and is certainly a concept that people are very receptive to.”The news arrived as Brendon McCullum’s team prepared for the inaugural day-night Test at Adelaide Oval from Friday, with several other nations already showing an interest in a concept that has been pushed heavily by Cricket Australia in recent times.”People are voting with their feet that they’re encouraged by what the pink ball Test match has to offer,” McCullum said before his team’s floodlit training session on match eve. “For us to play in front of 40,000-odd people in a Test match is pretty amazing and we’re really, really excited about it. Hopefully it goes off brilliantly and there’s no challenges and no problems.”If we have that final session on that fifth day under lights and a result is in the balance then it could be anything for Test cricket. It could be something that is outstanding for the game. We’ll find out once the game’s over but we’re relishing the opportunity to test it out.”

Victoria fast bowler Scott Boland is one step closer to a dream debut in the Boxing Day Test after he was officially added to Australia’s squad

Brydon Coverdale22-Dec-2015Victoria fast bowler Scott Boland is one step closer to a dream debut in the Boxing Day Test after he was officially added to Australia’s squad. Nathan Coulter-Nile, who had been 12th man in the win over West Indies in Hobart, suffered a shoulder injury while playing for the Perth Scorchers in Monday night’s BBL match at the WACA, and has been ruled out of the Boxing Day Test.”The Scorchers medical team confirmed that Nathan dislocated his right shoulder while fielding last night,” Cricket Australia physiotherapist David Beakley said. “Although the extent of the injury and rehabilitation period will not be fully known until we receive the results of scans later today, we can confirm that Nathan will not be available for the Boxing Day Test.”Boland, who was on standby for the Hobart Test but was ultimately not required to join the squad, has now been officially added to the squad for the second Test against West Indies. Although it remains unlikely that Boland will play, if any of Josh Hazlewood, James Pattinson or Peter Siddle struggle with their fitness over the next few days he will come into contention.Boland, 26, has collected 13 wickets at 17.07 so far this Sheffield Shield season. He particularly impressed Australia’s selectors during a Shield game against Western Australia in Perth, where he picked up 7 for 31 and bowled with pace, accuracy and movement.

an Bell is to replace Varun Chopra as Warwickshire captain, following his axing from England’s Test squad and his retirement from limiited-overs cricket

George Dobell21-Jan-2016Ian Bell has described his appointment as Warwickshire captain as “the fulfilment of a boyhood dream.”Bell is replacing Varun Chopra, whose form with the bat has declined since taking on the captaincy.But Bell insists his ambitions to win back a place in the England Test team remain undiluted and hopes that the longest break he has enjoyed from the game in more than a decade will spark a revival in his own form.”If I play at my best, I know I’m good enough to get into that England team,” Bell told ESPNcricinfo. “But I know I haven’t played at my best, or scored enough runs, in the last few months.”Warwickshire have asked me to do this job in the understanding that I still want to play Test cricket. I haven’t picked up a bat since the end of the UAE tour – the longest break I’ve had in 12 years at least – and I won’t do so until February 1. I feel fresher than I have for many, many years and I’m hoping we’ll see that time off pay dividends.”Bell is steeped in Warwickshire folklore. Having supported the team as a boy – he was in the crowd at Lord’s when they won the 1993 NatWest Trophy – he then represented the team at every stage of their youth system. As a result, representing them has always been about far more than a means to an end in winning England selection.And while he gained a reputation for diffidence in the England dressing room, he is a giant at county level. In an environment where he has been almost unconditionally valued, respected and supported from the start, he has batted with a confidence and dominance he has shown all too rarely at international level.To see him captain Warwickshire, meanwhile, has been to see a man confident in his ability as batsman and leader, inspired by a love for the team and deeply admired by colleagues and team-mates. He previously led the side to the Clydesdale Bank Trophy in 2010, scoring a century in the final, and has always said it was his ambition to captain the club at some stage. This is a role he will value and embrace. It is not a surprising decision.”The club and Edgbaston have been a huge part of my life since an early age and, in the past, I have made no secret of my desire to captain the Bears,” Bell said. “I am very proud to now be given the opportunity to lead this exciting squad and to challenge for titles in all forms of the game.”My England ambitions haven’t changed. But I’m trying not to think about that. If I do my job for Warwickshire – lead well and score the runs I know I can – England will look after itself.”Bell will know, however, that he may be in territory once occupied by Mark Ramprakash. However many runs he scores, however many games he helps his team to win, England may have moved on. He has been assured that is not the case – he has had face-to-face meetings with Trevor Bayliss and Andrew Strauss – but, now aged 33 and having retired from limited-overs international cricket last year, his chances of a recall are dwindling. Warwickshire, with Bell and Jonathan Trott in the middle order, may just be able to give Yorkshire a fight in the County Championship this year.”That’s the aim,” he says. “We have to ask ‘how do we become like Yorkshire?’ How do we get eight Warwickshire players in the England squad?”I want to help us win trophies, yes, but I also want to create an environment where everyone enjoys playing and is able to give of their best. I want to help Sam Hain become the next top player for England and find the next crop of top England and Warwickshire players.”And, of course, he wants to win back that England place. Despite their success in South Africa, nobody has nailed down Bell’s spot in the batting order and he certainly believes it is still possible.”I haven’t watched a huge amount of it, because I really was trying to have a break from cricket,” he says. “But what they have done in South Africa is magnificent. I’ve played there; I know how hard it is to win.”I’m delighted for them. I have a lot of friends in that side and even if I never represent them again, I’ll always be an England supporter. Being left out doesn’t change that.”But seeing them win just makes me more determined to be part of it.”Ian Bell could be a regular fixture in Warwickshire’s teams throughout the 2016 season•Getty Images

Chopra led Warwickshire to the NatWest Blast T20 trophy in 2014 and second place in both other competitions that season. But his form with the bat appeared to deteriorate with the responsibility of leadership – after recording 1,000 first-class runs in 2011, 2012 and 2013, he failed to do so in his two seasons as captain – and, as a result, his own international aspirations dwindled.His captaincy also gained mixed reviews. While his calm demeanour was a fine quality when his side was under pressure in the field, in limited-overs cricket especially, it was sometimes interpreted as something approaching apathy over the course of a long season. He is not understood to be especially upset by the decision – indeed, he was party to it – though it will increase the possibility that he returns to a club in the London area in the relatively near future.”I was surprised when I was offered the job,” Bell said, “but it sounds as if Varun wasn’t in the best place to continue. If he can concentrate on scoring the runs he has for us in the past, we’ll be in a great position. I consider him a key member of the side.”Warwickshire were fifth in Division One of the County Championship in 2015 – a modest result for a strong squad – and made it to the semi-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast. They finished the season looking oddly weary, however, and with the dressing room less content than it had been for several years.”I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as captain of the Bears and regard our NatWest T20 Blast success in 2014 as one of the best moments of my career,” Chopra said. “Whilst it has been a difficult decision to make, I feel that focusing on my batting is in the best interests of the team and I’m looking forward to fully supporting Ian and hopefully contributing to more success in 2016 and beyond.”There is talk within the club that Dougie Brown, the current director of cricket, could also make way in the relatively near future. There are those, not least some players, who feel that Jim Troughton, the captain when the team won the Championship in 2012, would make a better director of cricket. Brown’s record, however, is impressive – he won a trophy in 2014 – and the club have limited resources to make such a change. He, like Bell, is part of the fabric of the club; it would be a shame if they could not work together.While they announced record profits of £3.7m for the last year (before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) earlier in the week, Warwickshire face a tricky year or two, with lower-profile international fixtures to host and a huge debt to service. They recently cancelled their pre-season tour of Barbados and replaced it with a cheaper tour to Dubai.”The relationship between the captain and the coach is always vital,” Bell continued. “So it’s very important to get that right. Hopefully we can do that.”Being appointed to this job is a dream. It is a role many of my boyhood heroes – people like Dermot Reeve, Neil Smith and Tim Munton – had before me.”But it is only the start. Making a success of it over the next few years is the key thing now. I can’t wait to get stuck in.”

A six-for from fast bowler Mudassar Bukhari toppled UAE for 112 and spearheaded Netherlands’ seven-wicket victory in their World Cricket League match in Abu Dhabi

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jan-2016
ScorecardFile photo: Mudassar Bukhari took 6 for 24, his best figures in List A cricket•ICC/Sportsfile

A six-for from fast bowler Mudassar Bukhari toppled UAE for 112 and spearheaded Netherlands’ seven-wicket victory in their World Cricket League match in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday. Bukhari dismissed four of the top five batsmen and finished with 6 for 24 from his 10 overs, his best figures in List A cricket. Opening batsman Michael Swart struck an unbeaten 60 off 67 balls with seven fours and two sixes to make sure the chase was complete with 177 balls left unused.Netherlands opted to bowl at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium and had immediate success. Bukhari dismissed UAE captain Muhammad Kaleem off his first ball of the match, bagged Shaiman Anwar for 13 and Swapnil Patil for 2 in his next over. When Mohammad Usman fell for 6, to Bukhari again, the hosts were 38 for 4 in the 10th over. Mohammad Shahzad cobbled together 37 off 78 balls and wicketkeeper Saqlain Haider hung on for 33 off 68 balls, but with eight of their team-mates making single-digit scores, there was very little chance of recovery.

A 60-ball 122 from Babar Hayat carried Hong Kong to the threshold of their 181-run target but Oman managed to stave them off and seal a five-run win on their Asia Cup debut

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Feb-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Babar Hayat struck nine fours and seven sixes in his 60-ball 122•ICC

A 60-ball 122 from Babar Hayat carried Hong Kong to the threshold of their 181-run target but Oman managed to stave them off and seal a five-run win on their Asia Cup debut. Hayat’s 122 was the fourth-highest score in all T20Is. The innings, which included nine fours and seven sixes, carried Hong Kong almost single-handedly through their chase: the next highest score was Aizaz Khan’s 15.Hong Kong’s situation seemed desperate when Aizaz was sixth out in the 17th over, with 48 needed from the last 21 balls. But Hayat smashed four sixes in the 18th over, bowled by the left-arm spinner Zeeshan Maqsood, to bring the equation down to 18 from 12 balls. But the momentum swung back in Oman’s favour after a tight 19th over in which Bilal Khan conceded only three runs, and Hayat fell in the final over, going for a big hit with 11 needed from the last three balls.There was a controversial moment in the ninth over of Hong Kong’s innings, when Aamir Kaleem spotted Mark Chapman backing up too far and Mankaded him. At that point, Hong Kong were 77 for 3 with Hayat already on 57. The wickets of Nizakat Khan and Tanwir Afzal, coming close on the heels of Chapman’s dismissal, set back their momentum considerably.Having chosen to bat, Oman’s innings got off to a solid start thanks to Jatinder Singh (42 off 35 balls), who added 34 with opening partner Zeeshan and 41 with No. 3 Vaibhav Wategaonkar to move them to a solid 75 for 1 at the 10-over mark. Left-arm spinner Nadeem Ahmed dismissed both Jatinder and Wategaonkar in the 11th over, but every member of Oman’s middle order chipped in to ensure there was no loss of momentum. Adnan Ilyas (23) and Aamir Kaleem (19) were dismissed in quick succession after putting on 38 for the fourth wicket, before Mehran Khan (28* off 16) and Amir Ali (32* off 13) gave the innings an explosive finish, adding an unbroken 50 runs for the sixth wicket, off just 24 balls.

Shaun Marsh, Adam Voges, Hilton Cartwright and Josh Nicholas all scored half-centuries as Western Australia crawled along on the second day of their Sheffield Shield clash with Queensland at the Gabba

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2016
ScorecardFile photo: Adam Voges scored another half-century•Getty Images

Shaun Marsh, Adam Voges, Hilton Cartwright and Josh Nicholas all scored half-centuries as Western Australia crawled along on the second day of their Sheffield Shield clash with Queensland at the Gabba. At stumps on day two, the Warriors were 8 for 337, with Cartwright on 68 and Nicholas on 53, and their lead had gradually grown to 190 runs.The Warriors had started the morning on 2 for 66 and they proceeded to do their best to bat Queensland out of the match, the Bulls needing to win to claim a place in the Shield final. Voges made 52 from 145 deliveries and Marsh made 74 from 168, as Queensland struggled to string wickets together.Legspinner Mitch Swepson and fast bowlers Jack Wildermuth and Peter George picked up two wickets each. Queensland had been skittled for 147 in their first innings on day one.

A committee tasked with undertaking a comprehensive review of South Africa’s domestic cricket structures will not look into the Ram Slam T20 competition, which will undergo a separate analysis in the hope of increasing its commercial appeal

Firdose Moonda18-Apr-2016A committee tasked with undertaking a comprehensive review of South Africa’s domestic cricket structures will not look into the Ram Slam T20 competition, which will undergo a separate analysis in the hope of increasing its commercial appeal. The committee’s focus, therefore, will be more intensely trained on the second-tier provincial semi-professional competitions, which are believed to have been neglected in recent seasons.South Africa’s domestic structure is split into two sections: the professional franchise structure which consists of six teams and a semi-professional tournament which includes 13 provincial teams and Namibia. Both divisions play a first-class, List A and 20-over competition although the franchise’s first-class fixtures are held over four days and the provincial teams play over three.”This is something that has been a serious concern for people involved in management, because we lose a lot of players who don’t want to play in the semi-professional structures,” an insider told ESPNcricinfo. “From the time players finish school to the time they get franchise contracts, they can be in limbo. We want to look at how we can incorporate those players.”Both sections will be reviewed by a different team to the one that has been appointed to conduct an investigation into the national sides which is much smaller. While the national teams committee is a four-person panel, the domestic review team includes 14 people, headed by the director of strategy at auditing firm EY, Michael Lalor. It includes CSA’s national academy coach, Shukri Conrad, two franchise coaches, Warriors’ Malibongwe Maketa and Titans’ Rob Walter, two national selectors Ashwell Prince and Hussein Manack, one franchise captain Omphile Ramela, a selection of commentators and a journalist.”Nobody really knows how they came up with this group, but we are all waiting to see what they come up with,” the source said. While CSA has not put a time frame on the review, the panel are expected to reveal their findings by mid-year and it is expected to focus heavily on the provincial structures.”One idea that has already come up is that the provinces play less 50-over cricket and more T20s. There is also some talk of increasing the number of teams and the number of contracted semi-professional players,” the insider said.Currently, the provincial sides play 10 first-class, six 50-over matches a season and four T20s a season and the imbalance could be corrected with this review. Provincial teams contract seven players but the number could increase to 10.A franchise expansion from six to eight teams has also been mooted although if that was to be approved it would only happen in the 2017-18 season and not next summer. Kimberley, East London and Potchefstroom are believed to be in the running as franchise bases.Instead, next season will be the one in which CSA hopes to increase the impact of their T20 tournament, which lags behind some of the other global leagues. The Ram Slam has routinely struggled to attract big names both because of the weakening Rand and the scheduling – it often clashes with South Africa’s own international fixtures.Next season, CSA will make national players available for the tournament and have moved a home Test against Sri Lanka from December to January to accommodate for this. They are also looking to sign several international stars and “find ways to commercialise the competition, because it can’t be done in any other format.”

Former Barbados fast bowler Roderick Estwick has been named West Indies’ bowling coach and will replace Curtly Ambrose in the role, the WICB announced on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff14-May-2016Former Barbados fast bowler Roderick Estwick has been named West Indies’ bowling coach and will replace Curtly Ambrose, who served as a consultant, the WICB announced on Friday.Estwick will join the team at a preparatory camp from May 19, and his first assignment will be the home tri-series against Australia and South Africa, which starts from June 3 in Guyana.Ambrose had served as a consultant for the last three years and his most recent assignment was West Indies’ World T20 triumph in India in April. The WICB press release did not state a reason for Ambrose’s exit.Estwick, who was the bowling coach of the Barbados domestic side, has also coached the West Indies Under-19 and Barbados Under-19 teams previously, apart from participating in the High Performance Centre programme. He played 37 first-class matches between 1982-83 and 1989-90, taking 141 wickets at an average of 21.9. In 42 List A matches in the same period, Estwick took 43 wickets.

Graeme van Buuren turned the game as Gloucestershire claimed an unlikely 125-run victory over Glamorgan on a bizarre final day of the Specsavers County Championship match

ECB Reporters Network18-May-2016
ScorecardMark Wallace made a half-century before falling to the debutant Graeme van Buuren•Getty Images

Graeme van Buuren turned the game as Gloucestershire claimed an unlikely 125-run victory over Glamorgan on a bizarre final day of the Specsavers County Championship match at the Brightside Ground, Bristol.Chasing 269 to win in 76 overs, the visitors progressed serenely to 87 without loss, only then to lose all ten wickets for 56 runs from a seemingly winning position.Three of them fell to the left-arm spin of South African van Buuren on debut. He removed the top three Glamorgan batsmen Mark Wallace (50), Jacques Rudolph (36) and Will Bragg in a nine-over spell from the Pavilion End that ended with figures of 3 for 15.Craig Miles (3 for 55) and Jack Taylor (4 for 16) then continued the carnage, Miles removing the middle order and off-spinner Taylor taking two wickets in his first over and two more after tea to end the game.Gloucestershire took 21 points, while Glamorgan claimed six after a meek batting collapse that rendered their competitive efforts of the first three days immaterial.After a delay of 15 minutes at the start of the day because of overnight rain, the home side resumed their second innings on 302 for 8 and soon lost David Payne for 12 to a loose drive off Timm van der Gugten, which saw him caught at point.But Miles and Josh Shaw then frustrated Glamorgan with a last-wicket stand of 29. It ended when Shaw was caught at first slip by Bragg off Harry Podmore, leaving Miles unbeaten on a hugely valuable 39.By lunch Glamorgan had made 18 without loss and required a further 251 in the final two sessions. When Rudolph and Wallace continued where they had left off with the sun shining at the start of the afternoon session the outcome began to look inevitable.But everything changed when Wallace, who had faced 72 balls and hit seven fours, was bowled by van Buuren.
Rudolph edged to slip and it was 97 for 3 when Bragg lofted a comfortable catch to Taylor at mid-off. At that point van Buuren had taken three wickets in the space of 22 balls.Miles got in on the act when Andrew Salter, promoted in the order, top-edged to George Hankins at fine-leg. The batsmen crossed and in the same over Chris Cooke chipped a catch to Cameron Bancroft at midwicket.Suddenly Gloucestershire were in total control. Aneurin Donald miscued an easy catch to mid-on off Miles before the introduction of Taylor in place of van Buuren paid instant dividends.With his first ball of the innings, Taylor bowled Podmore and in the same over van der Gugten was caught at slip as he pushed forward.Tea was taken at 120 for 8, with Graham Wagg not having batted due to an injury to his forearm sustained in the first innings.He bravely appeared after the interval, batting with an arm guard and hit a defiant straight six off Taylor followed by a square-cut four.Rain then brought a short interruption and six overs were lost, leaving 24 to be bowled. With the fourth ball after the resumption, Taylor bowled Wagg with one that kept low and it was all over when the same bowler had David Lloyd caught behind down the leg side, sweeping.